Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and Tishman Construction Use Autodesk Buzzsaw to
Streamline Design and Construction Processes
SAN RAFAEL, Calif., Jan. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Today, Autodesk, Inc,
(Nasdaq: ADSK) announced that its Autodesk Buzzsaw collaborative project
management solution played an integral role in the first major construction
package that was issued in December on the Freedom Tower project. Skidmore,
Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM), the architects for the Freedom Tower, are using
Buzzsaw to connect the design teams, consultants, engineers, contractors and
project managers from multiple firms of varying disciplines throughout the
project lifecycle. During this first major construction phase, the project
team relies on Buzzsaw to manage and share 3D models, design and construction
drawings, streamlining the flow of all project information.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050415/SFF034LOGO )
"Requests for information and questions from contractors and
subcontractors come in daily and with Buzzsaw we only need to respond once to
each request and the entire project team gets the response at the same time
with the latest information about the project," said Angelo Arzano, senior
technical architect on the Freedom Tower project. "Autodesk Buzzsaw is our
primary communication tool. The degree of communication and collaboration that
Buzzsaw makes possible would have been inconceivable five years ago."
SOM is using Autodesk solutions across the entire Freedom Tower project
including the design development and construction documentation phases, which
produce at least 100 different subsets of drawings that team members need to
share. The on-demand Buzzsaw solution is the primary communication and
collaboration technology being used on the project to link multiple firms from
varying disciplines including structural engineer WSP Cantor Seinuk and
mechanical, electrical and plumbing engineer Jaros, Baum & Bolles. Because
it's easy to use, Buzzsaw also makes it possible for World Trade Center
Properties, LLC, an affiliate of Silverstein Properties Inc., and Tishman
Construction Corporation, the project's construction manager, to simply and
securely manage and share up-to-date project information.
"The Freedom Tower redesign presented an unprecedented challenge, in that
SOM had extensive experience designing buildings to stringent security
standards -- but no company had ever designed one so secure and so tall in
such a short time-frame" said Carl Galioto, partner-in-charge of SOM's
Technical Group. "Autodesk Buzzsaw, already a fundamental enabler of the way
we work, [0]has been indispensable in the coordination of our design efforts
and we expect it will have the same impact during construction."
Return on Buzzsaw Investment
Even before construction of the project begins, SOM has already saved
hundreds of hours and reduced costs using the Buzzsaw collaborative solution.
As the project moves into construction, typical project tasks and construction
management processes such as requests for information (RFI) and submittals
take considerably less time with the configurable forms that are automatically
created, distributed and reviewed through the Buzzsaw project management site.
As a result, SOM can turn around an RFI in one day rather than five or seven
days, a significant time savings. The personalized Buzzsaw dashboards and
project reporting features also provide the SOM team with up-to-the minute,
comprehensive project information that can be accessed from anywhere at any
time. Process improvements such as these have led to greater accountability
and productivity that are essential for SOM to meet tight project deadlines.
"Buzzsaw is instrumental in this extraordinary demonstration of teamwork.
It's exactly the kind of situation for which we designed Buzzsaw - where
process must be streamlined and disparate teams must work effectively to meet
aggressive timelines," said Amar Hanspal, vice president of Autodesk
Collaborative Solutions. "Technology is bringing greater efficiency to the
building industry, and we anticipate that more building owners and real estate
developers will begin to require collaborative project management solutions
such as Buzzsaw to manage their increasingly complex projects."
The Project
The Freedom Tower design features 69 office floors and 2.6 million square
feet of commercial office and public space. The Freedom Tower will also
incorporate the highest standards of building safety and quality and employs
the latest technologies in sustainable building design. In addition to using
Autodesk Buzzsaw and Autodesk DWF Composer for collaboration, the project team
is using Autodesk Revit Building and Revit Structure, AutoCAD and Autodesk 3ds
Max software products as the primary design and visualization tools.
About SOM
Founded in 1936, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) is one of the
world's leading architecture, urban design, engineering and interiors firms.
SOM has completed more than 10,000 architecture, engineering, interior
architecture, and planning projects in more than 50 countries around the
world. The firm has unparalleled expertise in designing super high-rise
buildings. It was responsible for the design and structural engineering of
America's tallest building to date -- the 109-story Sears Tower in Chicago.
Other signature projects include Lever House, an office building in New York
City that set standards for office design around the world; the 100-story John
Hancock Tower in Chicago; Jin Mao, an 88-story mixed-use tower in Shanghai;
and the Bank of America World Headquarters in San Francisco.
About Autodesk
Autodesk, Inc. is wholly focused on ensuring that great ideas are turned
into reality. With over seven million users, Autodesk is the world's leading
software and services company for the building, manufacturing, infrastructure,
digital media and wireless data services fields. Autodesk's solutions help
customers create, manage and share their data and digital assets more
effectively. As a result, customers turn ideas into competitive advantage by
becoming more productive, streamlining project efficiency and maximizing
profits.
Founded in 1982, Autodesk is headquartered in San Rafael, California. For
additional information about Autodesk, please visit www.autodesk.com.
NOTE: Autodesk AutoCAD, Buzzsaw, Revit and 3dsMax are registered
trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., in the USA and/or other countries.
All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective
holders.
Contact: Jennifer Giles of Autodesk, +1-415-505-9685, or
Jennifer.giles@autodesk.com.
SOURCE Autodesk, Inc.
CONTACT:
Jennifer Giles of Autodesk,
+1-415-505-9685, or
Jennifer.giles@autodesk.com
Web site: http://www.autodesk.com
(ADSK)
